image: Most melon plants, Cucumis melo, are either monoecious, meaning they grow separate male and female flowers on the same plant, or andromonoecious, meaning they grow both male and hermaphroditic flowers. The flower in the upper left-hand corner is male, the one in the lower left-hand corner is hermaphroditic, and the one in the lower right-hand corner is female. This image relates to an article that appeared in the Aug. 8, 2008, issue of the journal Science, published by AAAS. The study, by Dr. Adnane Boualem and colleagues at the Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique in Evry, France was titled "A Conserved Mutation in an Ethylene Biosynthesis Enzyme Leads to Andromonoecy in Melons." view more
Credit: Image courtesy of Science/AAAS